Page 72 of No Place Like You

Today, I haven’t really had a second to think about this. I’ve thrown myself into work with the last days ahead of us. I’ve been grouped with Ajay and Min Jun to work with Ivy where she’s overlooking a portion of the men’s line and the final pieces sent over by the brand.

“Seb!” Ivy calls as Seb finishes with the makeup department. He sits up straighter in the director’s chair he’s sitting in and looks at Ivy. “I need you in about five minutes,” she informs him. “We’re about finished with the rest of the lighting.” Seb gives a quick thumbs-up and turns to the makeup artist swiping a big, fluffy makeup brush over his forehead.

I move about the set, positioning the faded barstool under the lights to make sure it sits at the right angle. “Ivy,” I call as Ivy stands behind a nearby folding table, hovering over a tablet with a stern look of focus on her face while her fingers swipe across the screen. “I’m just going to grab the fan and once we set it there, we should be good to go,” I inform her as I point to the far right corner of the backdrop.

“Great,” Ivy answers. She sets the tablet down on the table and walks toward me. “Kyle’s pretty tied up right now. I was thinking you could run the shoot with Seb.”

I pause brushing off a layer of dust off the barstool. “What?”

“You and Seb have a pretty decent rapport,” she says, her voice calm and confident. “I think we’d get some pretty good shots if we have you shoot him.”

She wants me to run this shoot?

“Ivy,” I say, my voice pleading. “Will Kyle be okay with that? I mean, I don’t know if I’m ready to take on that much responsibility.” I feel a queasy tumble roll through my stomach, and my hands start to sweat. I don’t know if I can do this. I don’t know if Ishoulddo this.

“I agree, it is a lot. But I want to try this approach,” she says. “I saw the pictures you took for the streetwear looks with Seb. You did a good job.”

I hesitate and bite my lip. This is an amazing opportunity, and I’m completely taken aback she’d even consider me, but I’m not as confident as I should be taking on an entire shoot.

“You don’t think I should just watch Kyle? Or maybe just wait for him until he can give me more direction?”

Ivy offers a reassuring smile. “Try it,” she instructs. “I’ll be here to guide you. If things don’t feel right, which I can’t imagine it will,” she adds, “we’ll have Kyle take over.”

Seb saunters over from the makeup chair and slips into a bright fuchsia blazer. He perches himself on the stool, and Ajay hovers over him with the light meter, moving the device around him like she’s scanning him with a metal detector. Seb flashes a smile at me and runs his hands over the front lapels of his blazer.

“You already know what to do,” Ivy says calmly. “Just work your magic and make that handsome man more handsome than he already is.”

I huff a nervous laugh. “I thought we were taking pictures of clothes here.”

“That too.” Ivy laughs and nods her head to my camera bag sitting on the folding table. “Now, come on. Before all that foundation melts off of his cheekbones.”

“Don’t forget to pack a bathing suit,” Nat calls through the phone I have set on speaker. “And some sneakers too. In case we do something outdoorsy.”

“Check and check.” I pause, wrapping up the straps to my new neon pink bikini and tucking it into the corner of my suitcase. I’m ticking off my mental checklist, waving a finger over the must-have items already packed. The green bridesmaids dress that looks absolutely stunning on me with the satin material and curve hugging fit, black strappy sandals, a tropical dress for a luau, the laciest lingerie I have on hand. You know, in case…

“What time is your flight?” I ask, removing my thoughts from the “in case” sweeping through my preoccupied mind.

“Six a.m.” she answers. “And we’ll arrive close to noon, Honolulu time.”

“Ugh, that’s so early.”

She groans. “I know. Which means we’ll probably have dinner in about an hour, and we’ll call it a night.”

I look at the clock. “Nat, it’s four.”

“And that makes us senior citizens.”

I laugh. “Not even husband and wife yet and acting like an old married couple.”

Nat laughs too. “You’ll be there on Wednesday?”

“Yep.”

It’s Saturday now. The last day of my internship was yesterday, and a group of us interns are heading out for the night to celebrate. While I have some free time this morning, I’m opting for overly prepared instead of last-minute procrastination by packing for Hawaii. I keep telling myself the reason I’m staying busy has nothing to do with the aching notion of having to say goodbye to this place, but I know deep down, it is. I hoped packing would help keep those thoughts at a safe distance, somewhere I can easily ignore them, but it’s actually causing the opposite effect. Because now the closet that once hung all of my clothes looks nearly bare with mostly empty hangers. And my suitcase that was shoved into the corner sits open on the floor once again, much like when I first got here, and it’s too much. The reminder that all of this signifies my expiration date inside Dexter’s spare bedroom. Which also means no more Thai food, no moreSupernaturalmarathons, no more coupley things. No more Dexter.

“Dexter’s coming that day too,” Nat announces, and it startles me a little bit, the mention of Dexter’s name from my sister’s lips. Almost like I just got caught red-handed.

“Oh,” I say, hoping I sound indifferent about a piece of information I already know. I push a foot against the cardboard box with my address backhome written in thick black ink across the top, ready to be hauled to the nearest FedEx. Another reminder that my time here is coming to an end.

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